Out of a Job, and Happy That Way

Rising Numbers Say They Don't Want to Work

Some 34.8% of Americans over age 16 say they don't want a job, up from about 30% two decades ago, according to the Labor Department. The share of the population that is working or looking for work, known as the "participation rate," has been declining since about 2000 and is partly explained by the aging of the baby-boom generation.

But demographics can't explain a trend identified in a new paper by economists Regis Barnichon and Andrew Figura: Fewer of those outside of the labor force want to be working. In the early 1980s, more than 10% of those neither working nor looking for work said they wanted a job; on the eve of the latest recession it was 6%.

It isn't clear what explains the declining percentage of those who want a job, but the drop is most pronounced among young people, women and the less-educated. The authors suggest it might have to do with a rising focus on college attendance, the disappearance of many low-skilled jobs and cultural factors that put less value on working while in school.

The decline among women yields perhaps the authors' most intriguing hypothesis: They note that the trend was strongest in the mid-to-late 1990s, also a period of strong income growth. Among married couples, at least, rising incomes could have made it less attractive—or less necessary—for both spouses to work. Indeed, the trend flattened out during the 2000s, a period of much weaker income growth.

—Ben Casselman Real Time Economics blog WSJ.com

ENLARGE

More Commute Alone

American commuters prefer to go it alone—mostly by driving to the office, but increasingly by working from home.

Last year, about 76% of workers 16 years and older drove to work alone—near the all-time peak of 77% in 2005, according to the Census Bureau's American Community Survey. Driving alone dipped during the recession but has ticked back up as the economy has revived.

Just about every other way of commuting has either languished or declined. Carpooling plunged from about 20% of commuters in 1980, when gasoline prices were soaring, to under 10% in 2012. Public transport, just over 6% of commuters in 1980, is now 5%. A category the Census calls "other means"—which includes biking—stands at 2%, largely unchanged over the past decade.

The only category that has shown clear growth is working from home. It has doubled since 1980 to account for 4% of workers.

—Neil Shah The Wall Street Journal

Reprieves on Insurance

Federal lawmakers and state officials pressured insurers to allow consumers whose coverage has been canceled in response to the health overhaul to keep their policies beyond year's end.

Last week, one of the nation's largest regional health plans, Blue Shield of California, said it would relax its stance on terminated policies for about 115,000 people after state regulators demanded it. Customers now have until March to choose a plan for 2014. Because the newer plans generally cost more, the extension could save residents as much as $28.6 million on premiums, said California's insurance commissioner.

Cancellation letters are expected to be sent to as many as 10 million Americans who buy coverage directly from insurers, rather than through an employer or government program. While these individuals would have to buy new policies, regulators and lawmakers say the extensions would give them more time to shop for an affordable new plan—particularly because continuing problems with insurance exchange websites are preventing many of these consumers from finding new coverage.

—Timothy W. Martin And Louise Radnofsky The Wall Street Journal

Housing Revival Spreads

Median home prices rose from a year earlier in 88% of U.S. metropolitan areas during the third quarter, and several markets had double-digit increases, eroding home affordability in certain markets.

The National Association of Realtors data show the price recovery is spreading. In the third quarter of 2012, only 81% of markets showed year-over-year increases.

—Conor Dougherty Developments blog WSJ.com

The Aggregator features news and commentary from The Wall Street Journal and other publications. Email: daniel.lippman@wsj.com

This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law. For non-personal use or to order multiple copies, please contact Dow Jones Reprints at 1-800-843-0008 or visit www.djreprints.com.